Of Villains and Heroes
by oliviahotchner
Summary: "Sometimes, Emily, sometimes your need to save someone is so strong that your mind doesn't work. Sometimes you don't think because it's so important to save that person that you don't think about yourself, about dying. You don't have time to be scared. You just jump." It took five seconds to decide. One look between the gun and his uncovered chest. She couldn't let him die. 5-shot.
1. Prologue

**A/N: This kept me awake most of the night. I don't know where it came from, like the most of my stories, but suddenly everything was written and ready in my mind and I just had to go with it. It's written in Emily's POV and it may seem a little confusing at first because there're a few key elements missing but we'll understand more in later chapters (if you guys are interested...). I wasn't planning on writing something new but I was reading about Paget's return in the next season and I was so excited and my mind works crazy when I'm excited. I thought about letting it go but I knew that it'd keep bugging me until I explored it, so... here it is. I won't be a big multi-chapter fic. Probably no longer than a fiveshot. But, who knows...**

 **I sincerely hope you guys like it. I'm sorry for any errors.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds.**

OF VILLAINS AND HEROES

When I was a little girl, I remember my granddaddy telling me stories about damsels in distress, horrible villains and brave heroes who always came just in time to save the day. There were white horses and blades and beautiful dresses and long capes and I was always infatuated by the magic and beauty in those stories. At the time I wanted nothing more than to meet my own hero, my own prince who would rescue me and take care of me and we would live our happily ever after together.

I was ten when I figured it out that these kind of things weren't real. Princes and heroes didn't exist and there wasn't anyone to come and get me from my personal horror. Grandpa was gone, my father had left and I caught myself alone in a life I didn't want, in a home I didn't feel safe and happy, with people who didn't care about me. In that moment I realize I would have to be my own hero and there was no one but me who was capable of getting me out of that place.

When I was fifteen I found out that even if the heroes are a myth, the villains are pretty much real, and they're just waiting for the best chance to catch you and turn your life upside down. I realized that the villains are people who make you think they're on your side and they do their best to gain your trust and even make you love them, but when you least expect they sweep you out of your feet and take all your faith and your trust. The villains are real people and their betrayal is the worse thing in the world because it makes you start doubting of everyone and everything and that forces you to be on your own, because it's easier than trying to figure it out who is good and who is not.

After I left for college I made a new discovery. It was a discovery that changed my life and changed who I was. I found out that the villains are indeed real and they are everywhere, all the time and they attack anyone they want, without even needing to know them. But, I also found out the heroes are real too and that I could be one of them if I wanted. I could dedicate my life to catch the bad guys and put them away. I could save people and help those who suffered in the hands of the most terrible villains. I could use my strength and my mind to keep the world safe from them.

So that's what I did. I prepared myself and I grew stronger and smarter and I focused my efforts to make the world a better place, to keep the villains away from the good people, to make them pay for all the hurt and harm they've done and to give people hope, a hope I didn't have when I most needed.

I put two years of my life dedicated to save a little boy from a terrible destiny and to save the world from one of the worst villains I'd ever seen.

I started to work with one of the best heroes of the world and together we fought tooth and nail against the worst of the worse.

I didn't let anyone to dictate how as I supposed to do my job.

I didn't let anyone to make me hurt innocent people just to get what they wanted.

I didn't blink before putting myself between a villain and one of my best friends.

I didn't hesitate before allowing myself to get hurt just to protect those who couldn't defend themselves.

I didn't think about my own scars when I had to save my own villain from the hands of another.

I didn't think twice before staying beside my leader when he had to kill one of the most unscrupulous villains I've ever seen.

I didn't think twice ever.

I guess that's why I did what I just did.

There was this time when I was just six years old and still believed in white horses and dragons, and I was sitting on my grandpa's lap while he finished a new story. I remember perfectly when I looked at his brown expressive eyes and asked him why did the heroes put themselves in danger to save the others? Why weren't they scared? Didn't they think before jumping in front of a dragon?

I remember my grandpa chuckled at me and caressed my hair before answering.

 _"Sometimes, Emily, sometimes your need to save someone is so strong that your mind doesn't work. Sometimes you don't think because it's so important to save that person that you don't think about yourself, about dying. You don't have time to be scared. You just jump."_

I remember my childish response, saying that it was stupid. I remember clearly saying that I would never do something like that because dragons were too scary. And I also remember my grandpa's answer to that.

 _"For the right person you will, Emily. For the right person you won't think about your fears. For the right person you'll be brave enough."_

And now I know what he meant. Now I know what he was talking about. Now I can finally understand. Between Morgan's shout and the murdering eyes of that man, pointing a gun right to his chest, I didn't think. I couldn't think. The thought of him dying was so painful and unbearable that I didn't think about me, about dying.

He was the only thing I could see. His unprotected chest and his gunless holster.

It took exactly five seconds for me to decide. Five seconds between a shout and a gunshot. Five seconds for me to jump.

The pain isn't what I am focused in now. In fact, I can barely feel it. It's in his eyes that I am focused. It's those two hazel orbs looking at me with panic and worry. The chaos is installed around us, there are screams for help and the unsub's laugh echoing through the room and the only thing I can think about is how beautiful those hazel eyes are.

Right before the darkness swallows me I smile slightly at the memory of my grandpa's words and how he was right.

The right person will make you loose the fear.

The right person will make you stop thinking.

The right person will make you jump.

And he was indeed right. Now I know because I did it.

I jumped.

 **A/N: Reviews are incredibly appreciated.**


	2. Chapter 1: Sixty Seconds

**A/N: I am sorry for the delay in this update. As I explained in UT, work is crazy and I'm addapting to my new routine.**

 **This chapter is the explanation of what happened, how happened and what happened after the shooting. It's in general's POV. I hope you enjoy it. I'm sorry for any errors.**

Chapter 1: Sixty Seconds.

It's been thirteen days since the team arrived in Asheville. It's mid-September and they just got back from a week-off straight to one of the most gruesome cases they'd ever caught. Six young boys, ages between four and seven, were abducted from their homes after their parents were brutally murdered – their throats were slashed and their bodies were covered with stabs ante-mortem. The boys were held captive for at least three days, being sexually abused and tortured during that time, before being killed with a simple gunshot in the forehead.

The same day the team arrived another boy was caught and Juliane and Christopher Moron were found in a pool of their own blood in their room. Daniel Moron, old six-years-old, was found six days later in an abandoned building by some homeless guy who called the police. He had several cuts and burns all over his tiny body and a few bruises. The amount of sexual abuse had increased since the last victim, according to the coroner, and the agents struggled to keep their heads in the game with the amount of disgust they were feeling.

When Connor Montgomery was abducted two days later the team was ready to combust with so much anger and frustration. The guy was too good. He didn't let leads, no fingerprints, no DNA, no change of MO, nothing that could help them to get a break. Garcia worked frantically from Quantico, trying to find something that could connect the families, something that could help them to find with they were chosen by this monster, but it wasn't until Connor was taken for three days that she managed to find something.

And it wasn't even something concrete.

All boys frequented different schools, in different neighborhoods, but all schools had hired temporary technical analysts to work at the new online system they were adopting. None of them used secured companies, hiring freelancers to do the job. They didn't use the same professional and it wasn't until Garcia made a double check, deciding to look at their backgrounds – just for safety –, that she noticed that none of the names checked.

One of them was a ninety-six years old ex-lawyer, who now was enjoying his retirement in Bahamas; the other was a thirty-four years old supermarket cashier on a Walmart in Little Rock, Arkansas; the third was an eighteen-years-old young man who had just got a scholarship in NYU, and the list went on.

Garcia quickly called the team with the new information and they split up to go to each school to see if it was indeed the same guy. After a few descriptions from the employees and three clear images from the internal surveillance cameras, it was confirmed that the same guy used different identities to work at the boy's schools. They used a facial recognition program and managed to find the real identity of the unsub.

Charles Jacobs was a thirty-two year old ex-convict with a huge record. His parents had been murdered when he was seven in a home robbery and Charles was send to innumerous foster care homes and was always involved with some incidents. At the time he was sixteen he had already been arrested three times for robbery, traffic and physical assault. When he turned eighteen he moved to Jacksonville and lived there for seven years, going from one job to another in no time and living in cheap motels.

When he was twenty-five he moved back to Asheville and basically lived in the same conditions. He did a few computer courses and worked for a few companies, always being fired for inappropriate conduct.

With the home address in hands, the team quickly drove to the ambush the suspect, only to find the two bedroom apartment completely empty. Garcia dug deeper and found an old property in the unsub's father's name twenty miles away from the city center and the team got into the SUV's, storming towards the old farm.

There wasn't time to blink. They jumped out of the cars at the same time the unsub stormed out of the house from the backdoor, running towards the lake at the end of the property. Hotch and Morgan ran after him, the former managing to shot him in the leg before he could jump in the lake. The arrest was quick and, if the unsub tripped over his feet and fell, nose on the ground, that was just a small accident.

Connor was found in the basement, hands and feet tied, his sandy hair all gross and his innocent face covered with a big purple bruise. Unfortunately they weren't quick enough to avoid the sexual abuse, but the boy was alive and that was more than they were expecting. Connor's aunt was already waiting at the hospital when the ambulance arrived with the boy and the team was relieved to know that he would have a proper help to get through this and grow stronger and healthier.

The case was over, the guy was caught, the boy was saved and everything was done. They were finishing wrapping the last details and the jet would be waiting for them in forty-minutes to take them home. Hotch's Glock was being processed by the local PD, as procedure, and the interrogation had just ended with a full confession from Charles.

Rossi had been the one who heard all the awful things the monster related with sparkly eyes, as if it was something to be proud of. The whole team was sick and they only wanted to get home and forget about the last two weeks.

In sixty seconds, though, everything changed.

The unsub was being transferred from the interrogation room to the cell, hands handcuffed in front of him – God and the stupid officer who was with him only knows why they weren't on his back – and in a slip of distraction he managed to catch one officer's weapon and knock the officer who was holding him out. Morgan saw the commotion and jumped the exact same moment Charles raised the gun into Hotch's direction, only managing a shout of warning.

His gun was out of his holster in three seconds and right before he could shot the unsub fired against their unit chief. Morgan's bullet caught him right between his eyes. Charles' bullet caught Emily right in the back.

Wait, Emily?

"Prentiss!" Hotch's shout filled the room and then the chaos was installed. One officer called an ambulance while the other went to check the unsub and kick the gun to the side. The BAU team didn't notice anything but the brunette now bleeding in their chief's arms.

Hotch kneel down, bring her to the floor with him, while Morgan took off his jacket and joined him on the floor, pressing the fabric against the wound. "C'mon, Princess, stay with us!" He called but she just looked at Hotch's frantic eyes with and managed a small smile before passing out.

"Where the hell is the ambulance?!" Hotch shouted when Emily fell limp in his arms. "C'mon, Prentiss, open your eyes… you need to open your damn eyes, Emily!" He said with a panicked voice, slapping her cheeks quickly to get a response.

The sirens could be heard from outside as Morgan kept the pressure into his now blood-soaked jacket, both men trying to get a response from the brunette, unsuccessfully. The paramedics did a quick work to check Emily's vitals and put her on the stretcher, rushing her towards the waiting ambulance.

"Stay here and wrap this damn case. I don't want to hear about this son of a bitch anymore, take care of it. I'll ride with Prentiss and wait for you guys at the hospital…" Hotch said to Morgan and Rossi who just nodded at him while he jumped into the vehicle. The paramedics worked on Emily to stop the bleeding and keep her breathing and Hotch just sat beside her, taking her hand and talking to her, trying to help her to get some strength. "C'mon, Prentiss. You need to wake up. You need to wake up so I can yell at you for jumping in front of that damn bullet…" Hotch said with a shaky voice squeezing her hand.

There was a loud ring from the machines and the EMT's jumped in action. "Her BP is dropping, she'll collapse…" Hotch just blinked as they put the ventilator and worked on her breathing and injected some substances in her IV. The trip to the hospital seemed to take forever and he could barely breathe at the sight of her pale face. Her skin was cold under his fingers and he couldn't help but think that it had been a long time since he'd been that scared. Probably ever since Foyet's ordeal.

"Why did you do this, Prentiss? That bullet was for me, damn it!" He whispered harshly at her. "You're fired, you know! As soon as you wake up, you're fired!" He said as his eyes started to water. "Please, wake up, Emily… you need to wake up…" He begged just as the ambulance parked in front of the hospital.

They wheeled Emily straight to the OR and Hotch was directed towards the waiting room. Just as he sat at the waiting chairs he noticed that his hands were covered in blood and he managed to race to the nearest trash can before throwing up. He walked to the bathroom and washed his hands quickly and roughly, the feeling of Emily's blood making him sick and harder to breath.

He sat back heavily at the chair when he walked back at the waiting room and put his head in his hands, shoulders sagging and posture defeated. How did happened so suddenly? They were done, they had finished their job, they were just waiting to go home and then hell broke loose. The sound of Morgan's shout followed by the gun shot was still ringing in his ears and he felt his eyes watering at the image of Emily's wide dark eyes looking at him and her small smile right before she passed out.

Why did she have to jump in front of him?

It was supposed to be him in that operation room. It was supposed to be him with a bullet. It was supposed to be him.

He found himself talking to a God he didn't believe in a long time, asking for her life, asking for her to wake up and be fine. He couldn't even think about the possibility of losing her. What would he do? How would he cope with another death in his hands? Another woman dying because of him? How would he get through the guilt of knowing that she died to save his life?

How would the team survive?

She was their rock. She was the one who always took care of everyone. She was the one they asked advice. She was the one they looked for support. She was the one they trusted with anything.

She was loyal and she was strong and she wasn't supposed to get hurt.

"Aaron?" He was startled at Dave's voice and snapped his head up to face the whole team, minus Garcia, looking at him with anxious faces. How long was he sitting there? "Any news?"

Hotch shook his head quickly. "No… they directed me here when we got in and she was rushed to the OR. I don't know anything… how long?" He asked confused and Dave looked at him with sympathetic eyes.

"Two hours. Garcia is on her way here. There was no way to keep her in Quantico…" He said and Hotch nodded, knowing very well his tech analyst.

"It was supposed to be me. The bullet was for me. I was supposed to be there, not her. Why did she jump?" He asked with a low conflicted voice, looking at his friends.

"You'd be dead if she hadn't jumped." Reid said quietly. All eyes focused on him and he explained. "Due to your height difference, the bullet hit her upper back on her right side. It probably ricocheted on her right lung and maybe hit her collarbone, depending on the high. But if it had hit you it would have gone straight to your heart. You'd be dead, not in the OR."

Hotch just looked at him with wide eyes and then put his head in his hands again, not even caring at the few tears that found their way down his cheeks. He'd be dead if it wasn't for her. He'd be dead.

Somehow that didn't make him feel any better.

 **A/N: There you go. Next chapter will be the update on Emily's condition and the wait until she wakes up. It'll be up until the end of the week, I hope. Please, reviews are awesome and I love it. Let me know what you think of this.**


	3. Chapter 2: Heavenly Dickens

**A/N: I know. I know it's been almost a month and I'm really sorry for that. I gave myself some time out this last few weeks because things at home were a little too much, I got sick, hospitalized and on top of everything, I was having the biggest writter's block and I just couldn't focus to right things good. Anyway, that aside, I finally got better, healthy, put my shit together and now I started to dedicate myself to my work again. I will definitely update my other fics tomorrow and I promise that the updates will be more frequent and regular from now on. I'm sorry again and thank you all for the patience and all the reviews and alerts and PM's and everything. They kept me going, so really, thank you. I sincerely hope you guys like this piece.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own anything.**

Chapter 2: Heavenly Dickens

"Hello?" Emily called and heard the echo of her voice through the empty room. Everything was white and bright and there were no windows or doors or even furniture. It was just a bright, long hall, and she couldn't see the end of it.

 _"_ _C'mon, Prentis…"_ She suddenly heard a voice but she couldn't find the source of it.

"Hello? Is anyone here?" She called again but no one appeared.

 _"_ _You need to wake up… you need to wake up so I can yell at you for jumping in front of that damn bullet!"_ The voice said again, more urgent and now she was able to identify it.

"Hotch?" She called for him but there was just white and light and it was starting to burn her vision. "Hotch, where are you?" She asked more loudly but there was just her echo again.

 _"_ _Why did you do this, Prentiss? That bullet was for me, damn it!"_ The voice said again and she frowned confused. What the hell was he talking about? _"You're fired, you know! As soon as you wake up you're fired!"_ He said and she could almost feel the despair in his words but she couldn't understand anything. She was awake, so why couldn't he hear her and where the hell was she?

"Hello? There's anyone here? What is this place?" She called again and waited for something but nothing came but her echo again.

 _"_ _Please, Emily, you need to wake up…"_ He was bordering the absolute despair right now and she couldn't understand what was going on. Something was definitely wrong and she wanted nothing but to come back home, to follow his voice and tell him she was fine but she didn't know how to do it. It was just so confusing and scaring and she was starting to get antsy.

"Hey! Is there anyone here? I need to go home!" She said louder and this time she saw the light getting brighter down the endless hall.

"Calm down, child. Everything'll be fine…" A familiar smooth voice said as she saw a figure starting to appear through the light.

"Grandpa?" Emily asked incredulous when she recognized the figure as Jonathan Prentiss.

"Hello, sweet princess." He smiled at her and it was like she had returned thirty years in the past. He was exactly the same. White-grey hair, fair skin, dark brown eyes, his glasses perfectly put in place and his wide toothy smile aimed at her. He was all dressed in white and Emily couldn't help but think that he'd never looked so good before. Just after she took him in she started to question his presence there.

"H-how… am I dead?" She asked with big fearful eyes and he chuckled at her.

"Not yet, honey. You're just visiting the place…" He said.

"What is this place anyway?" She questioned again.

"We call it Peace." He said looking around. "We usually come here to think about things and to feel closer from our loved ones." He explained. "It's like a transitory place, where we give advice, answer questions and clarify things before going further…"

"Going further? So _I am_ dead?" She asked again, confused.

"Not yet, Emily. You're pretty close, of course, since you're here, but your body is still fighting down there." He explained and leaded her to the back of the hall, where now appeared a small bench. They sat down and he smiled at her again. "You're so big, princess… all grown-up and beautiful…" He said taking her hands with his.

"Why am I here, grandpa? What is going on? I can hear Hotch calling for me but he doesn't hear me…" She asked looking around.

"Think about it, honey. What is the last thing you remember?" He asked and Emily frowned, trying to recollect what had happened before she found herself in that place.

"We were going home… the case was over, the unsub was arrested…" She started. The memories started to come back and she widened her eyes. "He would shoot him. He would shoot him right on his chest and he wouldn't survive…" She said and her grandfather smiled at her with a nod.

"So, you jumped." He finished.

"I had to. There wasn't another option. I couldn't let him die…" She explained to him and he just nodded again.

"I understand that, sweetheart." He said. "Now that you're more enlightened about things, let's have a talk, okay?"

"Okay…" Emily said warily.

"First of all… I'm so proud of you, Emily." He started with a smile and she widened her eyes in surprise. "You became such a strong woman, independent, healthy, vivacious and so selfless… but I watched you grow all these years and I saw how you used your experiences to mold yourself and also to protect yourself, creating a shell, a thick wall inside of you, designed to not let people in, to not let yourself to take risks…" He said and saw her features hardening. "And don't give me that look, young lady, because we both know I'm right. You did what you said you wanted to do. You became a heroine. But you act too much like a soldier too, sweetheart."

"I do what I have to do, grandpa." She said grumpily and he chuckled.

"Still stubborn as always, I see." He said shaking his head. "C'mon. Let's take a walk for a bit…" He said getting up and looking at her.

Emily eyed him warily and got up as well, frowning when he started walking down the endless hall. "Where are we going?" She asked but he just kept walking. Suddenly there was a door down the hall and he opened it, gesturing for her to get in. She walked inside the room and frowned at the sight that greeted her. She was back to the library of the Embassy in France, where her mother was assigned when she was just ten years old. She could see a very young version of her sitting at a small chair looking at her father packing a few books into some boxes. Little Emily was looking at him with big confused eyes, her hands clutching tightly an old Cinderella doll, a present from her grandfather when she turned five. "What the hell is this?" She asked out loud just to be chastised by her grandpa.

"Language, Emily." He said seriously. "Where do you think we are?" He asked.

"I know very well where we are, grandpa. I just want to understand why on earth we are here?" She asked.

"We're going to take a walk, Emily. I told you… but we're going to take a walk around your life…" He clarified and she scoffed.

"What? Is this some kind of heavenly version of Dickens?" She asked sarcastically.

"No, Emily. There will be no other ghosts and we won't take three nights looking into your past, present and future. This is your life. And we're going to take a look through a few experiences you had, because if in the end you decide to go back down there, you'll be able to make a few changes in your life. Changes that will ensure that your future isn't something to regret for." He said with the same serious tone.

"And how watching my father leaving me all over again will help me to change my terrible future?" She scoffed.

"It was the first time someone let you down. The first time a man abandoned you. The first time a man hurt you purposely and exactly because it's your own _father_ , this damaged you in ways you never even understood. It took away some of your confidence and consequently made you stop trusting people easily. This is the start of the woman you are today. This was the event that unleashed every single decision you made through the years. This was the day that shaped you into who you are… and that's not a good entirely thing, sweetheart."

Little Emily got up from the bench and walked towards her father. "Daddy? What are you doing?" She asked confused and the man just ignored her, continuing to pack his belongs. Little Emily watched him with wide eyes as he dumped the books loudly into the boxes without turning around. He finished with the library and walked out of the room, the small footsteps of the little girl following him quickly. Big Emily and her grandfather followed the pair and entered into the master suit, opening a big suitcase and stepping into the closet to grab his clothes.

"He doesn't even look at me." Big Emily said.

"He doesn't know what to say…" Jonathan said.

"Well, he should've thought of something. He's the responsible one, he should've thought of something to tell his own daughter about why he's running away… I was just a girl, I didn't know what was happening, what all of this meant, I just wanted my daddy…" She answered with a hateful voice.

"Daddy, where are you going?" Little Emily asked again when her father closed the suitcase and put his coat on. He just rolled the suitcase out of the room, turning his back to her without looking back. The little girl raced after him, confused and scared. "Daddy, take me with you!" She cried as she followed him down the stairs.

He opened the door and just then he did turn to look at his daughter. There were tears running down her cheeks and she looked at him with so much fear and longing that he swallowed heavily. "Emily, come here." He said kneeling down to her to her level and he put his hands on her shoulders. "I have to leave now and unfortunately I can't take you with me, princess. Things are too much here and it isn't working for me but I can't give you the stability you need now, so you're better here with your mother."

"But I want to go with you…" She cried with a broken sob.

"I know you do, but I can't take you with me. Maybe someday we can be together again, but now I need to go and you have to stay here." He said getting up. "Bye, princess. I love you…" He said before getting out the door.

Big Emily and her grandfather watched the little girl for a few moments as she looked at the open door where her father walked away, the tears still streaming down her cheeks, biting back the sobs that were threatening to leave her lips.

"Can we leave now, please?" Emily asked her grandpa and he turned his eyes to her.

"We can. Just, take one last look at that little girl. This was the moment you started to losing your faith in life, love and especially men." He told her before leading them out of the room, walking back to the white hall. "Are you ready to go on?"

Emily scoffed and looked at him, her own eyes hiding the tears she didn't want to let out. "Do I have a choice?"

"You always have a choice, Emily." He answered serenely. "Remember, it was your choices that brought you here…" He said before leading them to another door.

 **A/N: Next update will be soon, promise. Reviews are incredibly appreciate.**


	4. Ch 3: Love is hurt, love is everything

**A/N: Hello everyone. Sorry the delay but I already explained how life is crazy these days. I'm working now on the new chapter of IGFED and I'll try hard to post it today or maybe tomorrow. Anyway, here is the fourth and second-to-last in this fic. I really hope you guys enjoy it :)**

Chapter 3: Love is hurt, love is everything.

"Family of Emily Prentiss?" All six heads snapped up at the doctor's voice and they all stood up quickly, anxious for news about the surgery. It'd been over five hours since she got into the ER and until now they only had two updates from a nurse saying that things were going accord with the predicted. Garcia had arrived a little over three hours earlier, already panicking about what had happened.

"That's us. How is she?" It was Rossi who had the courage to ask and all eyes were focused on the doctor, expectantly.

"Miss Prentiss was hit on her upper back and the bullet pierced her right lung and it got lodged in her collarbone, fracturing it. She lost a lot of blood and the damage in her lungs caused a cardiac arrest during the surgery but we managed to stabilize her and fix the tissue." He started to explain and several intakes of breath could've been heard when he mentioned the cardiac arrest. "The bullet was a little tricky to be removed but we managed it too. She's now in an induced coma because since she's with a tube to help with her breathing until her lungs get all functioning again, being unconscious can help her to heal faster. She's not out of risk, though. The next forty-eight hours will be critical for us to see if the damage in her lung is really fixed. We'll wait a few days to remove the tubes and if she keeps breathing by herself without problems we're going to take her out of the coma."

"Can we see her?" Hotch was the first one to ask the question that was in everyone's heads.

"She's being transferred to the ICU and normally I wouldn't allow any visitors, but I understand the situation, so I'm going to allow two visitors at time and no more than five minutes." The doctor said and the agents nodded quickly, thankfully.

Everyone looked at Hotch, who was struggling to absorb everything. "JJ, Garcia, you two can go first…" He said quietly and the others frowned at him. "I'm going to use the restroom…" They watched him walk away, eyes downcast, completely unlike his normal posture.

"Go ahead, girls. Morgan and Reid go after them and then I'll go with Aaron…" Rossi said and the others only nodded before leaving. Rossi sighed and walked towards the restroom, to find his friend. He opened the door and saw him standing in front of the sink, hands gripping the countertop tightly and eyes fixed in the mirror, watching his own reflection. "Are you okay?"

Hotch was quiet for a few seconds, just staring at the mirror without acknowledging the question. "She almost died…" He said quietly without looking away. "She flatlined…"

"And they brought her back." Dave said and saw his eyes closing briefly and a flash of pain cross his face. "Aaron?"

He didn't say anything at first but after a few moments he turned around and looked at his friend. "If something happens to her, Dave… I don't know how…" He said quietly and the way his voice wavered made the dots connect in Dave's head.

"How long?" He asked, knowing he would be understood.

Hotch let out a humorless chuckle before answering. "I have no idea… I just know that ever since I heard that gunshot I feel like there's a hammer inside my chest and it's like my brain isn't able to function anymore and I…" He stopped shortly with a sharp breath and blinked to keep the tears at bay. "If something happens I don't know how I'll cope, Dave. I only felt this kind of panic once in my life and it was when I was driving to my house, knowing Haley was being held by that psychopath."

Dave nodded at him and patted his back before nudging him to the door. "Let's go see her, Aaron." They walked towards the ICU just in time they spotted Reid and Morgan leaving the room.

"She's laying on her side. The doctor said it's to avoid the pressure on her back. He said they'll be readjusting her tomorrow…" Morgan said and both agents nodded. "The girls are waiting for us in the waiting room. We're going to head back to the hotel now… Penelope is tired from her flight and JJ wants to call Henry…"

"Okay… you guys take one SUV and we'll go with the other…" Dave said and Hotch kept himself in silence, just looking at the closed door. Morgan gave Dave a meaningful look and the older nodded at him before gesturing to the exit. He waited until the two agents had left before opening the door. "C'mon in. We only have five minutes…"

There was silence, only interrupted by the beep of the machines. Dave approached the bed and took one of Emily's hands in his, being careful with the IV. "Hey, pigheaded, you need to wake up…" He murmured to her and brushed a strand of hair that was falling on her cheek.

Hotch stood by the door, watching the small form of the brunette agent on the bed, hearing the beeping of the machines and trying to assure himself that she was indeed okay and alive. He heard Dave's voice talking quietly with Emily but he couldn't understand the words he was saying, too focused on controlling his own breathing and avoiding the tears that were polling his eyes.

Dave leaned down and pressed a light kiss on her forehead before turning around and walking towards his friend, placing a hand on his shoulder. "We don't have much time, Aaron. Go ahead and talk to her, give her something to hold on…" He nudged him towards the bed and left the room to give him some privacy.

Hotch didn't even notice he was moving until he found himself right beside Emily's bed and his breath hitched when he saw how small she appeared to be surrounded by machines and tubes. He sat at the visitor chair and carefully took one of Emily's hands with his and brought it to his lips, pressing the slightest of the kisses on her skin. "Emily…" He whispered and closed his eyes tightly to avoid the tears. "Oh, Emily… why did you do this?" He whispered brokenly and used his other hand to caress her cheek. "I'd give anything to trade places with you…" He brushed his fingers through her face, caressing the corner of her mouth, being careful with the tube. "You have to wake up, Emily. You need to wake up because you need to help me to understand this butterflies I'm feeling right now and why I can't stop thinking about kissing you and holding you close to me… it's all your damn fault so you need to be here to help me deal with this, otherwise you know I'm going to freak out…" He whispered quietly while squeezing her hand. "When did you pass through my barriers, woman?" He asked and closed his eyes again, dropping his head down to press another kiss on her hand. "You can't leave me now… you made me feel like this and now you have to stay here to deal with the consequences with me…"

"Aaron…" He looked at the door to find Dave looking at him with sad eyes. "We need to go…"

"I don't want to go…" Hotch murmured looking at the woman. "I don't want to leave her alone… what if she wakes up?"

Dave smiled sadly at him and shook his head. "She's not going to wake up, Aaron. Not right now…" He said and saw the resigned look at his friends face. "I'll wait you outside. One minute, Aaron…"

Hotch looked back at Emily and brushed his thumb on her cheek again. "I have to go now… but I'll come back first thing in the morning, I promise…" He whispered to her. "You hold still and fight, Emily. I need you to wake up. You have to come back to us, to me…" He leaned down and kissed her cheek sweetly and carefully. "Come back to me, sweetheart…"

Dave was waiting for him outside and he patted his back as they walked through the corridors to leave the hospital. "You better tell her when she wakes up, Aaron…" He murmured to him and Hotch just nodded at him, eyes burning with unshed tears, knowing that his heart had stayed at the bedroom with the brunette.

/*/*/*/

"Where are we now?" She frowned at her surroundings. It seemed to be an old construction, an abandoned building, almost all the furniture gone, saved from an old black couch and two book shelves, completely empty and full of dust.

"Don't you remember this place? You used to come here a lot when you were younger…" Grandpa Prentiss asked and suddenly Emily's eyes were wide and she looked sharply at him.

"Take me out of here." She said harshly but the elder of them didn't even flinch.

"This is an important place, Emily. You made some pretty big decisions here… decisions that made you the woman you are right now." Jonathan told her and she scowled at him angrily.

"I don't care! I don't want to be here. Get me out of here, grandpa!" She said and just then she saw a teenage boy walking into the room followed by a teenage Emily.

"You can't be serious, Emily." The boy's voice was hard and harsh and the young girl had tears in her eyes, looking pleadingly at him.

"I took three tests, John. I'm really pregnant…" She said with a panicked voice. "What are we going to do?" She asked and the boy looked at her hardly, his face set in stone making her shiver.

"What are _we_ going to do? _We_ are going to do nothing, Emily! I don't know what was your plan but I'm not going to fall for that. You got pregnant, you take care of this… I don't want anything with it or with you…" He said and the tears started to fall in young Emily's cheeks. "God… I just wanted to have some fun…" He groaned without looking at her.

"John, please… I can't do this alone…" Emily pleaded but he just shook his head dismissively and walked to the door.

"I don't want to see you anymore, Emily. I don't care what are you going to do with this… but I don't want to see you anymore…" He said and left, leaving Emily sobbing uncontrollably alone at the quiet room. The three of them stayed in silence for a few minutes as one Emily wept over the abandonment and despair of not knowing what to do and the other while remembering all the things she had to face after that day and the consequences that she had to deal through the rest of her life.

"Can we go now, please?" Emily looked at her grandfather with tears in her eyes and the man looked at her sympathetically before nodding.

"Let's go, sweetheart." He said gesturing to the exit. They left the room but the sounds of the young girl's sobs still echoed in Emily's head and she sniffed, wiping her tears quickly.

"Why did you make me see this again?" She asked quietly, her voice resigned and sad.

"Why do you think I did it, Emily?" He asked her and she shook her head. "This was the day you had the biggest disappointment of your life, sweetie. You were just a girl and you were scared and rather than stay by your side and help you to go through this, your friend left you alone to deal with the hardest thing that ever happened to you. You ended up making a very difficult decision and you regret it every single day. This day showed you how men can let you down, how they can raise your hopes to the highest level just to push you down, face on the ground, and turn their backs to you like they never even noticed you." He said looking straight to her eyes with a firm but gentle voice. "You are thirty-nine years old, Emily. How many long-term relationships did you have? How many times did you trust someone with your heart? How many times did you allow yourself to love or to be loved by someone? Anyone?" He asked and Emily dropped her eyes to the floor.

"Love hurts." She murmured and Jonathan cupped her chin and tipped her head up to look again into her eyes.

"Yes, it does, sweetheart. Love hurts a lot. Love disappoints. Love makes us sad. Love makes us despaired. Love makes us hopeless, sometimes…" He nodded. "But also, love brings us strength. Love makes us joyful. Love helps us to see the light in the end of the tunnel. Love makes us silly and makes us want to sing and dance and laugh. Love brings us a reason to live for, Emily. You only tasted the bad side of love and because of that you never allowed yourself to taste the good side of it. You never allowed yourself to taste the feeling of the butterflies and the shivers in your stomach or the flutter in your heart. You never allowed yourself to believe that it could be worth it, that it would take work and sometimes you may even get hurt or upset but in the end it would be worth it everything. You never allowed yourself to believe that there could be someone out there who would make you rethink about everything you thought you knew about love and life, someone who would deserve you to risk for."

"Because there isn't it." She said through her gritted teeth and he smiled sadly at her.

"Oh, but there is it, sweetheart. There is it and you finally found him. You found him and what you did?" He asked rhetorically. "You labeled him as 'too good to be mine'. You didn't believe that he could be that someone for you. You deliberately chose to believe that he was just untouchable, that he would never even spare a look at you because now it's you that it's not worth it. You put him in a pedestal and you left him there, prohibited, off limits, making yourself to believe that you'd never be too good enough to deserve someone like him. You made yourself to believe that he could never love you because it wasn't possible for someone so good to even think about someone so shattered as you."

"And he didn't! He never did. I'm just his subordinate, nothing else. He never looked at me as something else and he could never look at me as something else… I'm just wrong for him… I could never fit Haley's shoes. I could never be good enough…" She argued and he smiled at her.

"C'mon, Emily. You need to see something else." He said gesturing to a small door at the end of the hall. Emily looked at him warily before following him, wondering what memories he would bring back now.

 **A/N: So, what do you think he'll show her now? Reviews are incredible appreciated. Next chapter, the last one, will be up soon...**


	5. Chapter 4: Clarifications

**A/N: Hey! I'm back, finally, and with a final chapter! This chapter will be the end of Emily's journey with her grandfather and how she's going to wake up. Just one warning. Haley's a bitch here. This has spoilers from 3x02. I'm sorry for any errors.**

Chapter 4: Clarifications.

"Where are we?" Emily asked her grandfather as they entered into a living room, big and very well decorated, the walls colored in a beautiful shade of yellow and filled with paintings and frames. There was a big brown couch in the middle of the room and two pairs of armchairs on each side of it, a small wood coffee table in the middle. In the left corner there was a big fireplace framed with white wood, decorated with photo frames and small vases.

"You'll see…" Jonathan told her and just then they heard the front door opening and a very tired Hotch got inside, briefcase and go-bag in hand.

"This is Hotch's house?" She questioned and the man nodded.

"Haley?" Hotch called through the house and was met with silence. Emily saw him sighing sadly and walking towards the kitchen. They followed him and saw as he stopped in front of the fridge and looked at a small note. Emily tilted her head to look at the content and gasped.

 _Since I wasn't good enough for you to celebrate your birthday with, I'm out, having a celebration of my own with my friends. There's some chicken at the fridge if you want. Happy birthday, Aaron._

"He was out, working in a case of an abduction of a three years old girl. A neighbor had taken her from the backyard. He was the one who found her body dumped at an alley and had to notify the family." Jonathan said and Emily couldn't take her eyes out of the broken man in front of her.

"And she left him alone? At his birthday?" She asked.

"She called him a little bit after they found the body asking for him to come home because they had a reservation for his birthday dinner. When he said he still had to wrap the case and would be at home late she argued with him, called him selfish and told him that he could celebrate his birthday with his team." Jonathan said.

"Oh my god…" Emily breathed and they watched in silence as Hotch took the chicken out of the fridge and heated it before taking a seat alone at the dinner table and started to eat. "I can't believe she did this…" She shook her head.

"Let's go. We have more to see." He said gesturing to the door. They walked out and entered into a big bedroom, walls painted in a shade of blue and a big king sized bed in the middle.

"Aaron, I am pregnant! We're going to have a baby now… you can't seriously expect me to accept you to keep doing this job! It's dangerous, Aaron. You're never here and you never have time for me! Do you expect me to raise this baby by myself? I can't do this, Aaron! I can't!" Haley shouted at the man sitting in the middle of the bed.

"Sweetheart, please calm down. You can't get this agitated because of the baby…" He tried to reason, unsuccessfully.

"You're the one getting me agitated, Aaron. I just want a normal family, a normal life, with you here every day, raising this baby with me. Is this so absurd?" She asked and he shook his head.

"It's not. I know it's not, but honey… I need this job. I need to do this, I need to help people, I need to help to create a safer world, a safer place for our baby to live in…"

"No! The only thing you need is to be the big hero! You only want to be the fucking hero, the one everyone idolizes, the one everyone admires… being my husband and a father isn't enough for you! You just need to be the big FBI agent!" She accused. "You better think about it, Aaron, you better think about it because I'm getting tired of this. I'm tired and I'm not going to submit my child into this life. So you better straight your priorities because someday I'm going to get enough and then you won't have to worry about me and my baby anymore because we'll be gone…" She threatened and Emily saw the way his shoulders stiffened.

"Haley…" He rose from the bed.

"No. You leave me the hell alone. I don't want to look at you anymore tonight. When I get back I expect you to be settled in the guest room…" She said walking to the bathroom.

Emily watched as Hotch hit the bedpost angrily and walked into the closet to grab a pack of clothes before walking out of the room.

"How did he put up with this for so long?" Emily whispered as she watched him go.

"Let's go…" Jonathan said and they walked through the door into the living room again, this time with Haley sitting at one of the armchairs, speaking at the phone.

"I know, I miss you too…" She said smiling at the person on the line and Emily frowned.

"Well, they seem to be fine…" She commented and Jonathan shook his head.

"Listen to it…"

"… I can't leave right now, Jack is napping." Haley said. "Come here for a while… no, don't worry, I just spoke to him and he said it'll probably take another day or two to finish the case…" She said and Emily gasped.

"Is she…?"

"C'mon, babe, don't you want to see me?" Haley said seductively and Emily closed her eyes.

"I think I'm gonna be sick…" She said making a disgusted face.

"Okay… I'll wait for you…" Haley said beaming. "I told you, don't worry. He's fine with his other wife. I deserve to have some fun too…"

"He's working on a case, hunting a serial killer, probably surrounded by horrible crime scene photos and she says that he's having fun?" She asked incredulously.

"Let's go, sweetheart…" Jonathan said while nudging the fuming agent towards the door. This time they saw Hotch sitting at the couch, looking at his laptop and going through some crime scene photos.

"I thought this was over…" Haley came back from upstairs and glared at him.

"It did. I'm just curious…" He explained and she buffed at him. The phone house rang, then, and Hotch answered it, calling hello until the other person hung up. Right after that they could hear the ring of Haley's cellphone coming from her purse and Emily closed her eyes.

"Oh God…" She whispered as she looked at the broken man in front of her, struggling to keep his calm façade and not to snap.

"What did the section chief said?" Haley asked and just stared at Hotch as he looked at her, both knowing very well the nature of the phone call but choosing to ignore.

"She suggested for me to transfer to the white collar department…" Hotch said quietly and Emily gasped.

"Is he seriously going to just let it go?" She asked.

"Would you have to travel a lot?" Haley asked and this time Emily was the one who buffed.

"It'd be a 9/5 life…" Hotch answered.

"There's your answer then…" Haley said back and then grabbed her purse and walked out of the house, leaving Hotch sitting at the couch in silence, looking at the floor.

"I can't believe this…" Emily muttered angrily and Jonathan patted her back.

"C'mon, there's one more thing for us to see about this…" He said and they walked through the door, into the bedroom once more. They saw Hotch starting to pack his go-bag, already dressed in his usual suit.

"What the hell are you doing?" Came a fuming Haley into the room.

"Keep your voice down. Gideon didn't show up in Milwaukee and the team needs me…" He asked and she just smiled bitterly.

"I can't believe this…"

"Don't worry, it won't affect my transference. I'll be working on the case as a consultant…" He said and she snapped.

"You are not working on this case!"

"I can't just switch off my loyalty, Haley!" He argued.

"The suspended you for two weeks! Who you're being loyal to?" She questioned.

"The team needs me…"

"No, they need Gideon." She spat and Emily closed her eyes.

"God!"

"You know what this guy's doing in Milwaukee? He's abducting women, keeping them hostage for two days and then he cuts their hearts out…" He said and she shouted at him.

"Aaron, stop!" She cried. "Don't make me the monster here… I feel sick about these women. But when this case is over, there'll be another one, and another one, and another one… it is never going to stop…"

"This is who I am…"

"No! This is what you do…" She argued and Emily shook her head.

"She really doesn't understand, does she?"

"I'm trying to do the right thing here and there and I'd really appreciate some support…" He asked.

"Oh, right. Cause you always needs to be the hero…"

"C'mon, don't say that…" He pleaded.

"No, it's the truth. Clearly a happy life isn't enough for you!" She accused.

"Happy life for whom? God, she's ridiculous…" Emily muttered.

"Aaron, I need you here…" Haley said as he grabbed his things.

"And I will be. As soon as this case is over…" He said and she just shook her head.

"At least kiss your son before you leave…" She spat before he walked away and Emily sighed, looking at her grandfather.

"And then she packed her things and took Jack with her…" She deduced and he nodded.

"See now why you can't say that you'll never fit her shoes?" Jonathan asked. "She's no parameter, sweetheart. She's just another woman full of mistakes and problems… she did a lot of wrong things and she was never the right person to deal with who he is. She could never understand this need to help people, this need to hunt these killers, this need to make the world a better place. She never understood that. But you do. You understand because you share this passion, you share this need and you're able to get how important this is…" He explained.

Emily sighed and closed her eyes before looking at him. "Even if this is true, this doesn't mean anything because he just doesn't see me like that… I'm only his subordinate, maybe his friend. I can't pretend that something may happen between us because it's just impossible…" She argued and he smiled at her.

"I guess it's time for you to see one last thing…" He said nudging her into another door. They found themselves into a bathroom, Hotch standing in front of the sink, staring at his reflection with lost eyes. The door opened again and Dave came in, looking at his friend worriedly.

"Are you okay?"

Hotch took a few seconds to focus his eyes before answering. "She almost died… she flatlined…" He whispered.

"And they brought her back…" Dave answered and Hotch closed his eyes, a pained expression in his face. "Aaron?"

"If something happens to her, Dave… I don't know how…" He said quietly and Emily frowned at the tone of his voice.

"How long?" Dave asked and Hotch let out a small chuckle before answering.

"I have no idea… I just know that ever since I heard that gunshot I feel like there's a hammer inside my chest and it's like my brain isn't able to function anymore and I…" He stopped shortly and Emily could see the tears forming in his eyes. "If something happens I don't know how I'll cope, Dave. I only felt this kind of panic once in my life and it was when I was driving to my house, knowing Haley was being held by that psychopath." He finished and Emily gasped.

"Oh my god…"

"Let's go see her, Aaron." Dave said and both men left the room.

"He…" Emily started and Jonathan nudged her in.

"Let's go, there's more." He said and they found themselves now in a hospital room and Emily gasped at the sight of herself laying on her side, covered with tubes and needles.

Dave was standing by her side and Hotch was looking at the bed with pained eyes, struggling to keep his composure. "We don't have much time, Aaron. Go ahead and talk to her, give her something to hold on…" Dave said nudging him in before leaving the room.

Emily observed as Hotch approached the bed hesitantly and took a seat beside her. He took her hand with his and Emily could feel as he brush his lips into it. "I can feel it…" She whispered at her grandfather.

"Emily…" Hotch whispered and closed his eyes tightly. "Oh, Emily… why did you do this?" He whispered so brokenly that Emily felt her eyes watering. His hand brushed the cheek of her laying form and she could feel the fluttering of the touch again. "I'd give anything to trade places with you…" His fingers continued to trace the lines of her face and the corner of her mouth and she closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of his hand on her skin. "You have to wake up, Emily. You need to wake up because you need to help me to understand this butterflies I'm feeling right now and why I can't stop thinking about kissing you and holding you close to me… it's all your damn fault so you need to be here to help me deal with this, otherwise you know I'm going to freak out…" She couldn't believe in her ears and felt a tear rolling down her cheek at his words. "When did you pass through my barriers, woman? You can't leave me now… you made me feel like this and now you have to stay here to deal with the consequences with me…"

The door opened again and Dave popped his head inside, looking at him with sad eyes. "Aaron... We need to go…"

"I don't want to go…" Hotch murmured looking at her and Emily sighed sadly. "I don't want to leave her alone… what if she wakes up?"

Dave smiled sadly at him and shook his head. "She's not going to wake up, Aaron. Not right now… I'll wait you outside. One minute, Aaron…"

Hotch looked back at Emily and brushed his thumb on her cheek again. "I have to go now… but I'll come back first thing in the morning, I promise…" He whispered to her. "You hold still and fight, Emily. I need you to wake up. You have to come back to us, to me…" He leaned down and kissed her cheek sweetly and carefully. "Come back to me, sweetheart…"

Emily closed her eyes at the fluttering feeling of his lips and watched him getting up and leaving the room. "I can't believe it…" She whispered.

"That's because you never allowed yourself to believe that you're worth it, sweetheart. You never allowed yourself to believe that you could be actually happy with love, with someone good…" Jonathan said. "But now you see, you see that you're not to blame of everything that happened to you. You see that you too deserve to have a happy ending, Emily. And you have the opportunity in your hands right now. You have the right job, the good friends and the right man right in front of you." He said with a pointed look. "What are you going to do? Are you going to pretend that it's not there and run away like always? Or are you going to grab it with both hands and allow yourself to enjoy it, to live it…" He asked.

"I… I don't know…" Emily whispered. "I'm scared…" She confessed.

"That's normal, sweetheart. That's normal because love is really scary. Love takes work. You need to fight to make it work and it's not easy. It's up to you to think if it's worth or not…" Jonathan said. "It's time for me to leave and for you to decide, Emily. Are you staying or coming?"

Emily looked at him and then looked at her sleeping form with tears in her eyes. "I can't go. I'm not ready to go…" She shook her head.

Jonathan smiled and nodded at her, approaching her to press a light kiss at her forehead. "Then make it worth it, Emily. Make your second chance worth it…" He said and tapped her head and he's smiling face was the last thing she saw before everything went blank.

\\*\\*\\*\

It'd been five days since the surgery and the team still waited anxiously for Emily to regain consciousness. The section chief had allowed them to stay Asheville because the doctors wanted to wait until she came out of the coma to transfer her to Quantico and no one wanted to leave her there. Her bedside table was filled with flowers, lilies, her favorites, and Garcia had bought a pink fluffy blanket to cover her. Hotch was sitting at his usual place, at the armchair beside her bed, his hand attached to her.

The team had gotten used with his behavior towards Emily by now, although the way he brushed the hair out of her face sometimes and looked at her still raised some eyebrows. She was laying on her back already, ever since day two, and the ventilator had been taken off too on the day before. Her face was still pale but she looked more like she was just resting now, without all the tubes.

Hotch was with his eyes closed and his head down, forehead resting at the bed when he felt it. Just a slight squeeze at his hand but enough for him his eyes widen and his heart start racing. "Emily?" He called her and the rest of the team looked at him questionably. "She squeezed my hand." He explained and they all got into their feet and approached her bed. "C'mon, Emily, open your eyes… I want to see your beautiful eyes, sweetheart, can you open them for me?" He coaxed her and shivered at the sound of her whimpers, relishing the sound of her voice after so much time. "That's it, Emily, open them. Open your eyes, sweetheart…" He asked one more time and then the big brown eyes were opened, staring at him unfocused at first and then more vividly after a few blinks. He brushed a strand of hair out of her forehead and brushed her cheek. "Hi. Welcome back." He whispered to her with a smile. She was finally back.

 **THE END.**

 **A/N: I knoooow, I'm such an awful person! But no fear, I have the sequel planned already. It won't end here, I promise. My plans ever since I started writing this was to end things like this and I just couldn't do it any other way. I'm sorry. Please, leave me a review and tell me what you thought of this and if you'd really like to see the sequel. Thank you for all the reviews during this work. You guys are the best readers in the world 3**


End file.
